Thank you ccrida. Pours like a Belgian, cloudy grapefruit with a generous white head. Smell is fresh, mouthfeel is above average, but taste is not really there. Some sweetness and even astringency. Its drinkable, its a decent try, but its not up to a real tripel. (263 characters)

Appearance: Pours a somewhat cloudy amber color with the anticipated buoyant head that leaves plenty of lacing around the chalice

Smell: Loads of peppery sweetness on the nose, with candi sugar, white pepper, rotting pears and hints of banana and cloves

Taste: Sweet up front, with pear and apricot, joined, to a lesser extent by banana and clove; by mid-palate, plenty of bitterness arrives, with some pine, in particular; after the swallow, the candi sugar becomes more apparent along with a peppery spiciness

Mouthfeel: Medium body with effervescent carbonation

Drinkability: A very nice domestic example of the style, although there is a bit too much bitterness - but what would you expect from a NW brewer

Thanks, cannabanaceae, for the opportunity

The beer has been re-formulated since my initial review so I need to rate the new version

Appearance: Pours a clear pale golden color with a meringue of a head that leaves a few shards (4)

Taste: Biscuity malt, with a growing juicy fruit gum, candi sugar and pear flavor on the sweet side as well as a balancing pepper and bitter hop character; after the swallow, the sweeter flavors tend to linger in the finish (40

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with moderate carbonation (4)

Overall: It has been a while since I tried the prior version but it doesn't appear that this one is altogether different; perhaps a little less bitterness, but a very fine beer (4) (1,502 characters)

Update 4/08/2011: I haven't increased the numbers, but the current sample I have in front of me shows much less alcohol than it did 9 years ago; and the bitterness is much more in line. I'm tempted to give it a 4.5 for taste but I think that would bump it up a bit too much. Still, it's remarkably improved, and not surprisingly so after so many years.

11/13/2002: Pours a very deep gold with an orange cast. Slightly hazy. The white head is limited to an average size, and then drops to a limited surface covering - but it's also quite creamy, holds fairly well, and leaves some nice lace throughout the glass. The aroma is lightly estery and gently malty with just a limited yeastiness. The body is medium/light with a very fine and gently effervescent carbonation that seems limited for the style. There is, however, also a higher than expected level of bitterness which might seem elevated under a stronger carbonation. The mouthfeel is gently zesty at first, but becomes much more creamy as it warms. The flavor starts a bit wine-like with a dollop of honeyish sugar (through a combination of the high level of alcohol and a grape-like fruitiness), then shows its alcohol a bit more clearly just before the gently sweet and grassy maltiness comes through. It finishes long and dry with an increasing bitterness in the aftertaste. An interesting interperetation of the style with alot of character and many charms. (1,419 characters)

A golden hued hazed appearance with thin pale ivory cap w/ tight bead and confetti-like lace clings. The smell is strong with spicy esters from the yeast with a hop and bready malt odor with some slight grainy pils essence and light vegetal tinge. The feel is very spicy and dry in texture with mild carbonation for the style and hint of bitterness with slight toasted malt and creamy yeast with slight sweetness in the finish.

The taste is good with light pilsner flavor and mild cooked veggie w/ mild herbal hop accent up front which blends with the light spice and clove from the yeast. The taste is slightly fruity but not as extreme as the hops and yeast spice with mild green leafy sweet edge and hints of alcohol come through in the finish. The beer is more cracker-like with dry malt and pronounced hop bitterness as it warms with a slight peppery tinge. Overall a solid tripel & tasty interpretation which I could definitely enjoy more of -well brewed. (1,030 characters)

Poured into a St Bernardus bowl shaped chalice, glowing orange copper honey appearance with the body. Flowing off white head forms thick and bubbly, beautiful beer here. Aroma has zesty spices, I'm even getting "beef jerky". Don't ask me why, but I get that spiced meat, okay to be fair let's call it a canivorous spicy pepper kick. Aroma also carries on grapefruit pith/peel, with candied sugar additions, and bubblegum esters, with a touch of green apple tartness. Flavor is pretty absurd upfront honey sweetness, with bitter spice notes lingering on that initial sip, some bright fruit notes that aren't enough to save the day...this is one cloying beast of a Belgian style tripel, there are other 9 and 10% abv tripels out there that ferment out the cloying qualities and leave behind a masterpiece. Harsh on the palate, cloying with booze, I don't get it it's only 7.4% abv according to the label yet it's screaming a booze ridden flavor with each sip. Banana smoothie with peppery bitter spice additions doesn't work in the ester or spice components this beer has to offer. Texturally it's a nightmare on the palate. Please don't go out and rush into a 22 ounce bottle of this without checking your facts. You can get this beer served a hundred times better as a real Belgian triple for half price during happy hour at the Sharp Edge. (1,340 characters)

A: Pours a lightly hazy medium golden yellow in color with light to moderate amounts of visible carbonation.The beer has a half finger tall white head that quickly reduces to a medium sized patch of very thin film and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Light to moderate amounts of lacing are observed.

T: The flavors of the beer starts with moderate amounts of pale malts with some lighter hints of light fruits (pear, white grape, and apple), candi sugar sweetness, and zesty spices.

M: Just slightly less than medium bodied with moderate to heavy amounts of carbonation. Light hints of alcohol warming and light dryness in the finish.

O: Enjoyable and feels a little like a slightly American take on a Belgian Tripel but that makes it a little different than it's peers - pleasant flavors and smells. Easy to drink considering it's strength and the alcohol is well hidden from the taste and smell. (1,006 characters)

Thanks to 5000 for sending me this bottle. Always happy to try a new beer from Elysian.

The beer pours a golden color with a white head. The aroma has a ton of wheat, as well as some Belgian yeast notes and some orange citrus. The flavor is very similar. There is a lot of orange citrus, as well as some wheat and biscuit malt, as well as a little bit of sugary sweetness and some alcohol. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. (432 characters)

22oz bottle, purchased at the brewery April 2007; Sampled August 2007
I have had this beer a couple times and. as usual, the beer is quite over carbonated. The beer sits in my glass with a lightly hazy, orangish tinged, copper color. A multitude of mad rivulets of carbonation stream up through the beer. This produces a full, four-finger thick, pale tan colored head that slowly recedes with a crag-mired surface and all the while leaving lacing patterns on the sides of the glass. A sharp, spicy aroma greets my nose with notes of ginger, tart citrus, earthy coriander and a nice honey-like note. A solid, clean malt character is found in the nose too, with notes of biscuit-like malt, fresh crushed malt, soda crackers and even some sweet malt aromatics. The aroma on this beer is quite nice & I certainly am enjoying smelling this beer.

The beer is fairly sweet tasting (though in no way overly so), which gives this a solid herbal-varietals-honey like flavor. The beer is quite well carbonated still, despite it being almost 10 minutes since I poured this brew. The carbonation adds a zesty, prickly sensation and certainly helps to clean the sweet honey flavors from the palate, though it never entirely banishes it. The finish has a herbal astringency (almost basil like, sort of menthol like), a solid hop bitterness and a dry malt character to it. Flavors of orange zest, white pepper, young ginger, soda crackers, fresh cut sharp tasting herbs (a mix of arugula/rocket, dandelion, nettle and green tea), sweet malt, perhaps a hint of earthy coriander, honeysuckle and even some notes akin to penny royal.

Quite a nice example of a Tripel. Despite the perceived sweetness, this beer still captures a lightness and quaffability that I like to see in my strong, pale, Belgian-inspired ales (even though many examples from Belgium don't have this). I think that this beer is not nearly as sweet as my focus on it has been; a large part of this is due to the distinct honey note that I find here. I must say that I really like the hop character here, it adds a herbal, zesty edge to the flavor and plays quite a role in the flavor profile. This beer is really impressing me at this moment in time; in fact it is almost exactly what I want in a beer at this moment in time (yesterday or tomorrow I might not have appreciated it nearly as much). This is certainly one of the better beers I have had from this good brewery. (2,432 characters)

LOOK: Dark for a triple, deep copper hued beer. Exhibits fine clarity, with a soapy white head and some lacework on the glass. Active carbonation rising to the top.

SMELL: Aromatic to say the least, with strong floral notes, candy sugar sweetness, mild herbal touches, and pleasing to the senses inviting the first sip.

TASTE: Mellow flavors of Belgian yeast with a subtle fruityness (pear, apricot) upfront. There is a herbal element and a mild but well pronounced bitterness to round out the flavor profile. Even balance, light, agreeable flavor, and a modest alcohol content.

FEEL: Light bodied, crisp, not dry at all and more of a quenching character. Belgian yeast lingers into the finish showing off a fine flavor.

OVERALL: This is a very solid American style Tripel. Has the Belgian yeast note with American hops and a very well balanced brew. One of the better American interpretations of the style. (997 characters)

Pours a hazy golden orange color with tangerine hues and a one finger frothy white head that slowly settles into a lasting ring. Streaks of soapy lacing left behind.

Slightly earthy aroma with some pepery spice, grassy hops, crisp, light fruit and alcohol. Grassy soil character along with pepper and coriander followed by apple and pear. Pale biscuity malt underneath.

Medium bodied but fuller than expected with a strong earthy/musty character along with some prominent spice. Grassy, soily hops along with pepper, coriander and caraway seed followed by perfume like light fruit and booze. Fruit is subtle and overpowered by the earthy spice. Faint hints of pear and apple along with biscuity malt backbone. Boozy sweetness in the finish but abv is still decently masked. Kind of bland and needs more fruit sweetness for balance. (851 characters)

At 7.4%abv., coming in a 355ml slim brown bottle, bottle-conditioned; production date 15/02/13, served chilled in a straight imperial pint glass.

A: pours a lightly cloudy, dark yellow-ish or light golden colour, coming with a foamy off-white head with good retention and rather healthy & constant carbonation.S: fruit esters abound along with random orangey and grassy notes of hops, yeasty barn-ish (or “off-ish”) acidity and a dry-ish note, plus some zesty and floral esters. A decent layer of pale malts stays in the background, not dominating. Not so exotic estery or pronouncedly fragrant as one’s standard Belgian Tripel, but still a very refreshing and nicely executed one.T: refreshingly carbonated on the entry, packed with musk, juicy malts, lime zests, and overripe tropical fruitiness, balanced by lingering hop spicy-bitterness and an intensifying-ly dry palate from the exotic yeasts’ work, and a tinge of exotic “mung bean paste”-like estery taste lingering. Turning minerally dry on the palate and even chewy, with some dried lemon peel-ish tannic undertones.M&O: refreshingly carbonated but never sharp, medium-bodied, full-flavoured and well-structured, this is a nice Tripel beer but in a rather balanced and not so well-attenuated or dry-ish version. I like it very much. (1,308 characters)

Poured into a heavy glass chalice, formed a 1" off-white head over the cloudy golden brew. Head lasts and lasts, in part due to vigorous replenishment from the upward bubble shower, with minimal lacing. Aroma is sweet spiciness. Taste is sweet malts upfront, with moderate spicing coming on in the middle, and the combination lingers on the tongue. Mouthfeel is extra smooth, and drinkability is excellent as well. Nice one here. (510 characters)

Poured into a Gulden Draak tulip. Pours a slightly hazy golden amber with fine off-white, two finger head with great retention and lacing. Aroma of over ripe light fruit, light caramel malt and Belgian yeast; a hint of coriander and cloves. Flavor is sweet apple and pear juice, light bready malt, fruit finish with a hint of grassy hops. Very slight Belgian spicing. Medium bodied with light creaminess. Light flavored and fairly tame by Belgian tripel standards, but the flavors were pleasant and well balanced, although a bit on the sweet side. I enjoyed it as an interesting domestic take on the tripel style. (613 characters)

A: First pour yielded a pale orange color with a good amount of clarity. The head was a promising 2 fingers high, off white, with a frothy nature. A generous amount of foam lace lines the glass. Medium dense show of fine misty bubbles rise at a moderate pace. Continuous pours yielded a similar opening clarity indicating not much yeasty goodiness was present in the drink.

S: The nose exhibited a spicy orange aroma, along with pepper and coriander and a bit of lemon peels. The level of intensity was low however. The flavor was a bit tart of dried lemons and pale wheat. Very likeable flavor, smooth and continous in nature and not overly spicy. There was a bit of underlying fruitiness of dried apricots about as well. The individual character was not so much sharp and pronounced as it was blended together with equal recognition.

M: creamy and full on the tongue with a good deal of carbonation bubbles. A warming of tart citrus and wheat graces on the tongue upon the swallow.

D: Smooth going down, nice relaxing drink per style, though drank more like a French bier de garde then a triple. (1,103 characters)

Appearance: cloudy golden hue with plenty of effervescence and two fingers of frothy ivory head. It looks good to me.

Smell: somewhat bright malt aroma with sour apples and a little hint of chalk. That said, it's not quite as bright or fruity as I like my tripels to be; it's still not bad, though.

Taste: fruitiness is subtle here, which I like; apples and pears, mostly, in flavor. Again there's this little hint of chalkiness which I quite like. It does lack some of the richness of a higher-alcohol tripel; I'm missing a little of that here. Once again, it's good but not quite good enough.

Mouthfeel: quite nice. I feel like a tiny bit more body would be nice, but the carbonation and creaminess are out of this world.

Drinkability: while Bête Blanche does lack a few of the flavor qualities I so like in a tripel, it is still pretty darn good. The somewhat lighter-than-average ABV makes this a sessionable tripel -- something you don't see too often. (1,001 characters)

Poured from a brown 22 oz. bottle. Has a golden color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is alive with fruits, yeast. Taste is a bit milder than thwe smell, still some fruits and yeast, a touch of alcohol. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is an enjoyable beer. (265 characters)

Appearance - Hazy yellow colour with a smaller size fizzy/frothy white coloured head. It's hard to make out the amount of carbonation showing and there is some fair lacing. The head lasted for around 2 minutes.

Smell - Hops, coriander/clove, citrus, corn

Taste & Mouth - There is a below average amount of carbonation and I can taste breads, grains, and corn. There is also some light citrus, caramel, and a touch of spice.

Overall – A poor appearance and mouthfeel.. especially for a tripel. The taste isn't all that spectacular either. It actually tastes a bit like a home brew - I am disappointed with this one. (663 characters)

Bomber poured into my large St. Feuillien goblet, Bete Blanche is a really thick, dark murky gold, honey like, with a very large off-white head, long lasting and dense, leaving very heavy lace and big sticky sheets of foam. Would be fantastic were the brew not so turbid and imposing.

Smell is sweeter, lime like citrus, a little plastic, yeasty. Very tropical vibe, almost tanning lotion like, with coconut notes. Pretty nice, fruity rum drink with a hint of Tums.

Taste is fruity, with lots of citrus spices and very yeasty, almost like a big wit without the oats to soften the bite of the grains. Sour aftertaste like grapefruit juice (not any type of funk), probably just bittering hops, drying alcohol and yeast. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a lot of orange peel and coriander in this, and would be impressed if it was all esters. A nice bite to it, but on the cleaner side.

Mouthfeel is not really as thick as it looks, but it's still a mouthfeel, with a pretty high, fine bubbled carbonation.

Drinkability is pretty good, better then it looks, but it's too robust to want more then one at a time. Not really a trippel, but a pretty nice BPA, fruity and rustic. Good price too IIRC... (1,205 characters)

Pours a clean deep yellow color with an off white head. In the aroma, spices, especially ginger and candy sugar. In the taste, spicy, ginger, notes of candy sugar and some dry sugar notes. A spice bite and a lighter bodied mouthfeel, and a small dry ginger in the aftertaste. Interesting spices, but decent nonetheless. (319 characters)

220z bottle split with some friends. This was a light hazy yellow color and had a smell to it that was slightly spicy indicating its belgian style nature. The flavor was like a mix of wit and tripel to me. Not syrupy like I find a lot of tripels to be. I also liked the fact that this did not have a very high alcohol content compared to most tripels. Overall, not bad especially for the price. (394 characters)

Appearance  Th head was humongous. It foamed up instantly and went down slow, leaving a picture-perfect lacing design that I stared at for quite some time. The body is cloudy orange. This is beautiful.

Smell  Theres some big yeast/malt in there. The pungent aroma worked right through the head. It smells almost like the Ruth HOTD, if youve ever had that. Theres a sweetness as well, consisting mostly of oranges, caramel, and a light sprinkle of table sugar. The classic candy sugar aroma is here in spades.

Theres also some good spicing in this brew. I can pick up some coriander and big clove, along with white pepper and maybe cinnamon. This is a very complex bouquet. There are even some hops in here to give it a balanced flavor and to dry out some of the other flavors. Amazing!

Taste  This is the real deal. The yeast/malt flavors pick it up a step at the taste, and the sweetness comes in big and smooth. The sugar is 10X from the aroma  it is monstrous. All of these flavors, and it is smooth as silk. Also, though the ABV isnt on the bottle, this one has a heaping share of alcohol. Beware.

Mouthfeel  Big carbonation and an almost-full body put this right on style. Theres a slight alcoholic sting as well, giving it a bit of excitement.

Drinkability  This was smooth as silk, right on style to the nth degree, and refreshing to boot.

Comments  I hate to go bonkos over a beer with three reviews brewed in my back yard, but this is unbelievable. Ive always said that a local brewery couldnt do a malt-based ale, let alone anything Belgian, but this is the real deal. This is my idea of an Abbey Tripel.

Update  I just loved this beer so much when I first joined the site. I thought, now that its a year later and Ive had literally hundreds of Belgian Ales, I should revisit this one.

Its still one of my favs of all time. I think it is damn near perfect and stand by all of my scores. Ive sent this to a few other BAs who havent thought so much of it, but I still love it. I guess thats all that matters. Cheers! (2,096 characters)